- France: Fourth-century coin and mysterious inscriptions found under Notre Dame cathedral
Source: CBS News
“Wilting in the summer sun, a line of tourists waits to climb Notre Dame cathedral and meet its gargoyles. Four meters (13 feet) beneath them, a team of archaeologists is digging the other way – straight down and back in time, to Roman Paris 2,000 years ago. … a slice of Notre Dame’s forecourt has become an excavation site – an open pit ringed by barriers and crossed by a wooden walkway, a few steps from the line-up. … Among the hundreds of objects already found: a fourth-century coin stamped with the face of the Emperor Constantine, and shards of medieval pottery painted on the inside with marks no expert has yet deciphered — like a modern Da Vinci Code.” (06/02/26)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/notre-dame-cathedral-dig-of-the-century-treasures-found/
- US Job Openings Climbed to 7.6 Million in April Despite Economic Fallout From the Iran War
Source: US News & World Report
“U.S. job openings jumped in April as the labor market looked resilient despite economic uncertainty caused by the Iran war. U.S. employers posted 7.6 million job vacancies in April, the Labor Department reported Tuesday, up from 6.9 million in March and most since May 2024. Economists had forecast just 6.8 million openings. Layoffs fell but so did the number of Americans quitting their jobs – a sign of confidence in their prospects. The American job market has been recovering from a dismal 2025. Last year, companies, nonprofits and government agencies added fewer than 10,000 jobs a month, least outside a recession since 2002. This year has been better — job growth averaged 76,000 a month from January through April.” (06/02/26)
- Anthropic expands Mythos to 150 additional organizations in more than 15 countries
Source: CNBC
“Anthropic on Tuesday said an additional 150 partners in more than 15 countries will gain access to its powerful Mythos artificial intelligence model, which has proven adept at finding software vulnerabilities. The startup said the expansion of Project Glasswing includes industries that weren’t well represented in the initial launch, such as power, water, healthcare, communications and hardware. New partners will need to meet security requirements before gaining access to the model. … Anthropic’s Mythos expansion comes a day after the AI lab said it would start offering access to the European Union. On Monday, the company also confidentially filed its initial public offering prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Commission, beating rival OpenAI to the milestone and paving the way for a significant AI share sale.” (06/02/26)
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/06/02/anthropic-mythos-ai-project-glasswing.html
- UK: London hit by severe travel disruption as underground drivers strike
Source: United Press International
“Millions of commuters, tourists and Londoners were facing travel disruption across the center of the British capital on Tuesday after 1,700 subway drivers went on strike in a dispute over working hours, forcing the transit authority to shutter four of the city’s 11 lines. … The situation was compounded by traffic jams and engineering problems on other — non-underground — parts of the city’s rail infrastructure …. Buses were impacted by much heavier traffic than normal. Transport for London said it expected to run a normal service across the network on Wednesday before another 24-hour strike, scheduled for Thursday.” (06/02/26)
https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2026/06/02/London-tube-strike/5701780399270/
- Belgian NGO urges Indian regime to arrest Israeli reservist over alleged war crimes
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
A Belgium-based NGO has called on Indian authorities to arrest an Israeli army reservist on holiday in northern India over his alleged role in Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. The Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF) filed a complaint Saturday with India’s Police Service, foreign affairs ministry and Bureau of Immigration of India to demand ‘the immediate arrest’ of Eitan Gilboa, an Israeli citizen currently holidaying in Himachal Pradesh …. ‘HRF has submitted a detailed investigative report proving that Gilboa, a reservist in the Israeli army, personally carried out and celebrated the systematic demolition of entire residential blocks in Gaza as acts of revenge, constituting war crimes under the Geneva Conventions Act, 1960,’ read the website.” (06/02/26)
- Blue Origin says rocket explosion spared fuel tanks and key launch pad parts
Source: SFGate
“Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin said Tuesday that last week’s rocket explosion spared fuel tanks and some other critical parts of the launch pad. Critical to NASA’s Artemis moon program, the company’s massive New Glenn rocket blew up during an engine-firing test at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. A lightning tower and the transporter-erector used to move and hoist the rocket were destroyed in the blast that sent shock waves across the state. CEO Dave Limp said the methane, hydrogen and oxygen tanks look to be in good shape. The water tank is also fine and the support tower that’s still standing can be repaired in place. A booster and other rocket parts housed nearby were not damaged. Overall, this was ‘a bit of good news,’ Limp said in an X update, adding: ‘We will fly again before the end of this year.'” (06/02/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/business/article/blue-origin-says-rocket-explosion-spared-fuel-22287658.php
- Trump names William Pulte as acting intelligence head
Source: The Hill
“President Trump named William Pulte, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, to serve as the acting head of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. In tapping Pulte, Trump turns to an ally who has been behind referring several of his foes for prosecution for alleged mortgage fraud. Pulte would replace Tulsi Gabbard, who resigned last month.” (06/02/26)
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5905332-pulte-federal-housing-chief
- British couple lose Iran jail sentence appeal, family says
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“A British couple jailed in Iran on espionage charges have lost an appeal against their 10-year sentence, according to their family. Lindsay and Craig Foreman were arrested in January 2025 while passing through Iran on a round-the-world motorcycle trip. They were accused of spying – charges they adamantly deny – and were sentenced in February. Both are currently on hunger strike in Tehran’s Evin prison. A member of their legal team in the UK told the BBC no reason was given for the rejection of their appeal. Lindsay’s son, Joe Bennett, said they were ‘not permitted to attend their own appeal hearing’. ‘It is a serious human rights violation, and it is one more reason why two British citizens, with no other options left, are now starving themselves in protest.’ Bennett said his mother and step-father had been asked to sign documents in Farsi which they could not read, and refused.” (06/02/26)
- Poland: Regime to Ban Phones in Schools, Restrict Access to Pornography
Source: US News & World Report
“Poland wants to ban under-16s from using mobile phones in schools from September 1 and plans to introduce stricter age verification rules to access pornography, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Tuesday. Countries including the Netherlands, South Korea and Italy have banned smartphones in schools due to [feigned and/or irrational] concerns over their impact on concentration and behaviour. Others have banned – or are considering banning – children’s access to social media. The proposed bill would ban children aged 7-15 from using phones on school premises, including breaks between classes, and give schools legal bases for creating deposits to store phones.” (06/02/26)
- Rubio testifies before Congress for first time since start of Iran war
Source: SFGate
“Secretary of State Marco Rubio [faced] a litany of questions Tuesday about the Trump administration’s fragile or stalling diplomatic efforts around the world when he appears for back-to-back hearings on Capitol Hill for the first time since the Iran war began. Senate Republicans are meeting Tuesday to discuss next steps after the Justice Department said it would comply with a court order pausing the implementation of a $1.776 billion settlement fund designed to compensate President Donald Trump’s political allies. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is also set to return to Capitol Hill on Tuesday for a hearing before the House Appropriations Committee. The hearing was scheduled for discussion of the Justice Department’s budget, but lawmakers will almost certainly focus their questioning on the settlement fund.” (06/02/26)
- NM: Lawmakers to blast out subpoenas in Epstein investigation
Source: NBC News
“New Mexico lawmakers said Monday they are demanding documents from an array of government and private institutions as the first major step in their effort to tell the full story of what Jeffrey Epstein did in the state — and whether any other people should be prosecuted for crimes there. A committee known as the New Mexico Truth Commission expects to send subpoenas this week to 14 targets. … Epstein, who bought a ranch outside Santa Fe in 1993 and typically visited several times a year, was never charged with crimes in New Mexico, despite allegations of sex crimes dating back decades. At least 10 women have alleged that Epstein groomed or abused them at the 10,000-acre ranch starting in the mid-1990s, an NBC News review of court testimony, lawsuits and other records found.” (06/01/26)
- Ghana’s anti-LGBTQ+ bill to be “scrutinised before approval,” says president
Source: BBC News [UK State Media]
“Ghana’s new bill criminalising LGBTQ+ activities will undergo scrutiny before it is officially approved, the president has said. Speaking during a visit to the UK, John Mahama said his legal council and attorney general would ‘sit on it because it was a private members’ motion … [and] not a government bill’. The bill – passed by parliament on Friday – proposes up to three years imprisonment for identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer, and a ‘duty to report’ prohibited acts to police. ‘We will look at it and make sure that everything is in order,’ Mahama said, adding that the bill would be referred to the Council of State – his advisors – if there were any problems. Since coming into power last year, Mahama has been pressured by religious leaders to strengthen anti-gay measures, which ban same-sex relationships under laws dating from the British colonial era.” (06/02/26)
- Kenya: High Court orders regime to release details of Ebola facility
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
“Kenya’s High Court has ordered the government to disclose details of a proposed United States-linked Ebola quarantine facility, a day after hundreds of people took to the streets in the central town of Nanyuki to protest about the planned site. The Reuters news agency said two people died from gunshot wounds during Monday’s unrest, citing protest organiser Patrick Wahome and a security source. The court extended conservatory orders stopping the establishment of any Ebola quarantine, isolation or treatment facility in Kenya and barred the admission of individuals exposed to the virus.” (06/02/26)
- The Iran war sparks partnership in Asia
Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff“More than any other region, Asia has felt the knock-on effects of the Iran war in energy supplies. Before the conflict began in February, some 80% of the oil shipped through the Strait of Hormuz went to Asian buyers. In recent weeks, as those supplies have dwindled, the region has endured blackouts, fuel rationing, and dozens of protests, from South Korea to the Philippines to India. The expectation was that each country would turn inward to protect petroleum supplies. Not so. With a population of more than half of humanity, Asia has shown a great deal of humanity in tackling the crisis together. ‘Now that they are hostage to events thousands of miles away,’ reported The Economist, ‘the squabbles that frequently break out between Asian neighbours no longer look quite such a threat.'” (06/01/26)
- Pay attention, Congress: A better model for remote work is here
Source: The Hill
by Gleb Tsipursky“On a weekday morning in downtown Washington, federal buildings and corporate offices still feel half-full, even as return-to-office emails pile up. At the same time, across the Atlantic, the House of Lords has treated remote work not as a culture-war skirmish but as a subject for a full inquiry on home-based working, backed by extensive evidence and formal hearings. Its Home-based Working Committee spent 10 months asking two simple questions with big consequences: First, is working from home working? And second, if so, how should governments and employers respond? The answer, detailed by researcher Jane Parry in a synthesis of five years of evidence on hybrid work, is clear enough for policymakers. Hybrid work shows only modest average effects on productivity, but it delivers meaningful gains in labor supply, employment rates, recruitment, retention and office efficiency when it is managed deliberately.” (06/02/26)
https://thehill.com/opinion/congress-blog/labor/5904519-hybrid-work-economic-infrastructure/
- No one is inexorably illiberal
Source: Sex and the State
by Cathy Reisenwitz“What’s the point of trying to civilize the barbarians? Why demonstrate what liberal democracy can offer to a fundamentally illiberal civilization? Why bother trying to make inroads with a ‘basket of deplorables?’ Why bother trying to reason with people who ‘get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations?’ The irony is that the entire argument is fundamentally illiberal. The whole point of liberalism is that your ‘civilization’ does not define you. Nor does your race, sex, nationality, or religion. The whole point of liberalism is that the world is not divided into us versus them. Creating outgroups and outgroup hostility and moral panics is the authoritarian’s playbook. It’s immiserating.” (06/02/26)
https://cathyreisenwitz.substack.com/p/no-one-is-inexorably-illiberal
- Thousands Of New Yorkers Just Attended A Nazi Parade For Israel
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone“Multiple far right Israeli ministers attended New York City’s Israel Day Parade on Sunday, including Israel’s genocidal finance minister Bezalel Smotrich. Smotrich is ideologically not significantly different from a Nazi. Which means New York City just hosted a Nazi parade that was attended by thousands of people. New York officials are acting shocked and appalled by Smotrich’s appearance at the march, but ‘I can’t believe there were Israeli officials at the Israel parade’ is kind of a hard sell. This is just what supporting Israel looks like: standing shoulder to shoulder with genocidal extremists and making common cause with them. That’s what Israel is.” (06/02/26)
- “Rationalist” Dating Strategy
Source: Bet On It
by Ilya Somin“I will start by noting I am not an academic expert on dating and relationships, nor am I any kind of professional dating guru. Far from it. But what I learned may be useful to some people, in part for those very reasons. If I could make this strategy work, the same may be true for others.” (06/02/26)
- The Last Thing We Need Is Government Interference in College Sports
Source: Town Hall
by Derek Hunter“I grew up in Michigan, so even though I didn’t go to the University of Michigan (too rich for my blood), college football was all about the maize and blue. My dad loved Wolverines football and gave my brother-in-law all sorts of a hard time about his having gone to Michigan State (only way it could’ve been worse is if he’d gone to Ohio State). They’ve both passed away in the last couple of years, but the spirit of their love of their respective schools and their football teams lives on in our family. It’s getting, well, different now, however. When I was a kid, college sports were the audition for the pros and occasional scandals would see heralded universities across the country – including Michigan – penalized, both as programs and individual players for violating the NCAA rules.” [editor’s note: I wonder if Hunter’s opposition to government interference in sports extends to gender rules? – TLK] (06/02/26)
- Themistocles and the Dangers of Democracy
Source: Law & Liberty
by James Diddams“Themistocles’s unlikely rise and fall in Athens should remind us of equality’s hostility to true greatness.” (06/02/26)
https://lawliberty.org/book-review/themistocles-and-the-dangers-of-democracy/
- AIPAC: Defending the Indefensible
Source: Common Dreams
by Masood Haque“As the American Israel Public Affairs Committee confronts a changing political landscape, one in which support for Israel has become a liability, powerful voices are coming to the defense of AIPAC and its hold on American democracy. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is one such voice. He addressed the issue in an interview with Politico. … Shapiro lamented what he described as the ‘weaponization’ of criticism directed at AIPAC, saying it was ‘being used cynically by some to try and silence certain voices.’ Pressed on whether he meant critics were erasing the distinction between opposition to AIPAC and opposition to Jewish donors, he said yes. Shapiro is recasting the lobby’s scorched-earth tactics against politicians who do not toe the line on Israel as an attack on Jews and their right to political participation.” (06/02/26)
- Post-Conflagration LA
Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob“Though Angelinos started voting early in the mayoral race, today is L.A.’s election day. It’s a race watched with varying degrees of enthusiasm and alarm across the country. Polls show no candidate close to a majority, which means the top two will likely face-off in a November runoff. Spencer Pratt, a former reality TV star, has run a study-worthy campaign and could finish close to the top. He’s a former Palisades homeowner. He now lives in a trailer on his property, upon which he cannot yet re-build after the fires that swept through the area in January 2025. And he’s built his campaign around the government’s absolute failure on every level to assist — or just get out of the way — of a recovery.” (06/02/26)
https://thisiscommonsense.org/2026/06/02/post-conflagration-l-a/
- How To Sell a War
Source: Reason
by Brandan P Buck“Presidents use a web of private influence to garner support for foreign invasions.” (06/02/26)
- Going to Bat for Burma
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Jake Scott“What connects Thailand’s surprisingly strong economic performance in the first quarter of 2026, and its simultaneous diplomatic push to reintegrate Myanmar into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)? On the surface, not much: one is an economic story centered on GDP figures, exports, and growing domestic demand; the other is a tense geopolitical story involving civil war, diplomacy, and regional security. Under the surface, however — and you don’t need to scratch much to get there — the two are closely connected. Thailand’s Myanmar policy is not only about ASEAN unity, but reflects a broader effort by Bangkok to stabilize the regional environment that remains more fragile than the headline figures suggest.” (06/02/26)
- Walgreens didn’t abandon Chicago’s South Side; we let crime drive them out
Source: Fox News
by Corey Brooks“Walgreens didn’t leave the South Side of Chicago because they hate Black people. They left because we made it impossible for them to stay. Just recently, another Walgreens shut down on Cottage Grove, and once again the public conversation turned in the wrong direction. People started blaming the company, blaming corporate greed, blaming everything except the conditions on the ground that made staying there untenable. But businesses do not keep stores open out of charity. They stay where people shop, where customers feel safe and where theft and disorder do not make daily operations a losing proposition. At that Cottage Grove Walgreens, the theft was off the charts. By local reports, the store lost more than a million dollars to theft in a single year.” (06/02/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/walgreens-didnt-abandon-chicagos-south-side-let-crime-drive
- The Origins of Cooperation: From Evolutionary Strategy to Decentralized Coordination at Scale
Source: Libertarian Institute
by Michael S Milano“If natural selection rewards traits that maximize individual fitness, why doesn’t behavior collapse into constant defection? In a world shaped by selfish replicators, what explains the persistence of cooperation — and how is it sustained across animal communities and human societies?” (06/02/26)
- EconLog Price Theory: Veggies or Noodles?
Source: EconLog
by Bryan Cutsinger“Consider the markets for fresh vegetables and instant noodles. Assume that fresh vegetables are a normal good, while instant noodles are an inferior good. Suppose Congress bans a commonly used fertilizer and pest-control chemical in vegetable farming. Without this input, vegetable yields fall and there is increased spoilage from pest damage.” (06/02/26)
https://www.econlib.org/econlog/econlog-price-theory-veggies-or-noodles
- Why the plan to disarm Hamas is destined to fail
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Jared Hillel“While Hamas has previously stated, on numerous occasions, that it would lay down its weapons in exchange for the creation of a Palestinian state based on the pre-1967 borders, Israel has repeatedly rejected such an offer. In fact, the IDF has pushed deeper into Gaza since the ceasefire was signed and now occupies 60% of the strip instead of the 53% that was originally agreed on. By refusing to consider Hamas’s core demand, a mutually respected long term peace deal becomes difficult to envision.” (06/02/26)
- A World Without America?
Source: TomDispatch
by Alfred McCoy“While Washington’s war with Iran drags on, month after month, without any end in sight, the world is witnessing the very real limits of U.S. global power. As President Donald Trump lurches repeatedly from threats of devastation to promises of peace, it’s becoming increasingly clear that U.S. military might is no longer capable of subduing even a mid-sized power like Iran, much less holding the rest of the world in its thrall. Amid all the drama of air raids, drone strikes, and naval blockades, there are deeper geopolitical forces at play that lend a lasting historical import to events in the Persian Gulf — dynamics best seen by comparing two newspaper editorials with revealing similarities despite the 80 years separating their publication.” (06/02/26)
- Justice Clarence Thomas, Harry Jaffa, and the Declaration of Independence
Source: Ludwig von Mises Institute
by Wanjiru Njoya“In the natural rights tradition, the rights to life, liberty, and property are inherent and inalienable. They are not “created” by the Constitution but are recognized and protected by it. It means each and every individual has these rights even if the law might deprive them of their rights. Justice Thomas explains how he learned this from his grandparents, who raised him, in Savannah, Georgia …. Justice Thomas was right to say that equality in this sense is a universal ideal, but he went astray when he attempted to ground this ideal in the Declaration of Independence.” (06/02/26)
https://mises.org/mises-wire/justice-clarence-thomas-harry-jaffa-and-declaration-independence
- Is the US economy headed for a bust?
Source: Cobden Centre
by Dr. Frank Shostak“There is a high likelihood that due to the past large decline in the yearly growth rate of the money supply, the US economy is heading towards an economic bust. Note that the yearly growth rate of money supply fell from 79% in February 2021 to minus 7% by May 2023. The sharp decline in the yearly momentum of money supply is starting to hurt various activities that emerged on the back of the huge increase in the money supply yearly growth rate between August 2019 and February 2021 – from minus 1% to 79%. It is likely that the effect of this massive increase is still dominating the present state of economic activity.” (06/02/26)
https://www.cobdencentre.org/2026/06/is-the-us-economy-headed-for-a-bust/
- Cenk Uygur and Hasan Piker banned as the UK’s free speech backslide continues
Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Angel Eduardo“Like any country, the British government can exercise broad discretion when it comes to who it decides to let into its borders. There is currently no proof that Uygur’s and Piker’s views on Israel were the motivating factor behind their visa revocations, but if they were, it’s yet more evidence of the UK’s backsliding on free speech in recent years. Remember the UK police database tracking ‘non-crime hate incidents?’ Or the 12,000 people arrested in the UK in 2023 for their online speech? And who can forget the UK government’s ominous and Orwellian ‘Think before you post’ warning on social media back in 2024? Perhaps most disappointingly, the banning of scheduled speakers from entering your country also betrays an unwillingness or inability to engage with ideas and arguments on their merits.” (06/01/26)
https://www.fire.org/news/cenk-uygur-and-hasan-piker-banned-uks-free-speech-backslide-continues
- Jill Biden’s tales spin a web of self-serving fantasy
Source: Fox News
by Jonathan Turley“Jill Biden’s book is not even out yet — and she’s already trying to get it displayed on both the fiction and the non-fiction shelves. From her husband’s mental decline to the pardoning of her son, the former first lady has moved from the historical to the fanciful. Thomas Jefferson once wrote that ‘honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom’ — but if her promotional interviews are any measure, that chapter appears to be entirely missing from View from the East Wing: A Memoir. Last week Biden faced a torrent of criticism, including from Democrats like her former spokesperson, over her claim to CBS News that she thought her husband’s debate meltdown meant he might have been suffering a stroke. The interviewer didn’t mention the fact that Biden famously declared at the time that her husband was brilliant in the debate, and denied he was showing signs of mental decline.” (06/01/26)
https://nypost.com/2026/06/01/opinion/jill-bidens-tales-spin-a-web-of-self-serving-fantasy/
- The Case Against Mass Deportation
Source: Checks & Balances
by Ilya Somin“The Trump Administration’s mass deportation efforts are a cruel, violent affront to the values of our nation.” (06/01/26)
https://chkbal.substack.com/p/the-case-against-mass-deportation
- Trump Watch, 06/02/26
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
“Amusement on Cuba from America’s Right Wing.” (06/02/26)
https://www.fff.org/freedom-in-motion/video/trump-watch-amusement-on-cuba-from-americas-right-wing/
- The Bryan Hyde Show, 06/02/26
Source: The Bryan Hyde Show
“Eric Peters from Eric Peters Autos is my guest. We tackle timely topics that will inform, inspire and enlighten those who put a higher value on truth than on political allegiance.” (06/02/26)
- The Blessings of Liberty with Jeffrey Rosen, 06/02/26
Source: Jeffrey Rosen
“Justice Gorsuch on The Blessings of Liberty.” (06/02/26)
https://rosenjeffrey.substack.com/p/justice-gorsuch-on-the-blessings
- Cato Podcast, 06/02/26
Source: Cato Institute
“What ‘All Men Are Created Equal’ Actually Meant.” (06/02/26)
https://www.cato.org/multimedia/cato-podcast/what-all-men-are-created-equal-actually-meant
- Law & Liberty Podcast, 06/02/26
Source: Law & Liberty
“The Versatile John Witherspoon.” (06/02/26)
https://lawliberty.org/podcast/the-versatile-john-witherspoon/
- Show-Me Institute Podcast, 06/02/26
Source: Show-Me Institute
“Are Data Centers Good for Communities? with Judge Glock.” (06/02/26)
https://showmeinstitute.org/article/economy/are-data-centers-good-for-communities-with-judge-glock/
- PropagandaWatch, 06/02/26
Source: The Corbett Report
“Toilet Paper Panic!!!” (06/02/26)
https://corbettreport.com/toilet-paper-panic-propagandawatch/
- Antiwar News with Dave DeCamp, 06/01/26
Source: Antiwar.com
“Ghalibaf: Iran To Confront Israel If No Lebanon Truce, US and Iran Trade More Attacks, and More.” (06/01/26)
- Real Unity, episode 15
Source: Free the People
“Have Americans Healed from the Pandemic? | Lauren Noone.” (06/01/26)